Gay couple face prison for ‘unnatural acts’ in Malawi

A JUDGE convicted a gay couple in Malawi of unnatural acts and gross indecency after a trial that drew worldwide condemnation of this southern African country’s colonial-era laws on homosexuality.

Steven Monjeza, 26, and Tiwonge Chimbalanga, 20, had been jailed since their arrest on December 27, the day they celebrated their engagement with a party that drew crowds of curious, jeering onlookers.

Blantyre Chief Resident Magistrate Nyakwawa Usiwa said the sentencing will take place on Thursday. The couple could be imprisoned for up to 14 years.

Hearings in the trial also have drawn Malawians who have ridiculed the couple, an indication of views on homosexuality in this traditional society – and elsewhere in Africa.

Homosexuality is illegal in at least 37 countries on the continent. In Uganda, lawmakers are considering a bill that would sentence homosexuals to life in prison and include capital punishment for “repeat offenders”.

Even in South Africa, the only African country that recognises gay rights, gangs have carried out so-called “corrective” rapes on lesbians.

Michaela Clayton of the South Africa-based Aids & Rights Alliance for Southern Africa said not only were human rights being violated, but the fight against Aids was being hurt as gay people forced underground were unlikely to seek counselling and treatment for Aids. Ms Clayton said gay people and other minorities in Africa had in recent years become more assertive, which could have led to the backlash.

Priti Patel of the Southern African Litigation Centre, an independent rights group, said Monjeza and Chimbalanga could appeal on the grounds the laws under which they were prosecuted violate the country’s 1994 constitution.

Malawi’s government has been defiant in the face of international criticism over the prosecution.

Malawi church leaders have backed the government, saying homosexuality is “sinful” and the West should not be allowed to use its financial power to force Malawi to accept homosexuality.

The controversy, though, has emboldened some activists in Malawi. The Centre for the Development of People was formed to fight for the rights of homosexuals and other minorities.